Rose de Verdun (d. 1247) and Grace Dieu Priory: Endowment Charter and Tomb.
by Nigel Tringham from Transactions of the Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society 93.
One of only a few houses of Augustinian canonesses, Grace Dieu priory was established at Belton in north-west Leicestershire some time between 1235 and 1241, by an Anglo-Norman heiress, Rose de Verdun.
Its original endowment has been known so far from a charter confirmed by Henry III in 1241, but that refers only to the gift of Belton manor with the advowson of the church there, whereas much more detail is given in an original charter which survives in the records of the Augmentation Office in the National Archives (E 315/30, f. 2). In particular, the surviving original refers not only to the grant of Belton manor but also to land, including a mill pool, as well as estates further away next to Sleaford in Lincolnshire, along with their neifs (unfree villeins), and at Great Limber (also in Lincolnshire). You can view/download the full article here 2019_93_199-220_Tringham.pdf (1 MB)
Rose de Verdun’s tomb in Belton church in 2019. [Photograph taken by Pam Fisher.]
